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Mercer County, Pennsylvania
Mercer County is a county located in the U.S. state of Pennsylvania. As of 2000, the population was 120,293. Its county seat is Mercer6; Sharon is its largest city. Mercer County was part of the Sharon MSA as designated by the U.S. Census Bureau until the 2000 census, when it was appended to the Youngstown-Warren, Ohio MSA. Geography According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the county has a total area of 1,768 km² (683 sq mi). 1,740 km² (672 sq mi) of it is land and 28 km² (11 sq mi) of it (1.58%) is water. Adjacent Counties *Crawford County (north) *Venango County (east) *Butler County (southeast) *Lawrence County (south) *Mahoning County (southwest) *Trumbull County (west) Demographics As of the census² of 2000, there were 120,293 people, 46,712 households, and 32,371 families residing in the county. The population density was 69/km² (179/sq mi). There were 49,859 housing units at an average density of 29/km² (74/sq mi). The racial makeup of the county was 93.13% White, 5.25% Black or African American, 0.11% Native American, 0.40% Asian, 0.02% Pacific Islander, 0.17% from other races, and 0.91% from two or more races. 0.67% of the population were Hispanic or Latino of any race. There were 46,712 households out of which 29.30% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 54.80% were married couples living together, 10.90% had a female householder with no husband present, and 30.70% were non-families. 27.00% of all households were made up of individuals and 13.20% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.44 and the average family size was 2.96. In the county, the population was spread out with 23.40% under the age of 18, 8.90% from 18 to 24, 26.10% from 25 to 44, 23.50% from 45 to 64, and 18.10% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 40 years. For every 100 females there were 94.70 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 90.80 males. Political bellwether Mercer County is considered a political bellwether for the state of Pennsylvania since its demographics, urban/rural ratio, and party affiliation closly mirror the state as a whole. This failed to hold true during the 2004 Presidential election however when George W. Bush won Mercer County with 51% of the vote. That year John Kerry won the state as a whole with 51% of the popular vote. Municipalities Under Pennsylvania law, there are four types of incorporated municipalities: cities, boroughs, townships, and, in at most two cases, towns. The following cities, boroughs and townships are located in Mercer County: Cities *Farrell *Hermitage *Sharon Boroughs Townships Education Higher Education * Grove City College (Grove City) * Thiel College (Greenville) * Pennsylvania State University, Shenango Campus (Sharon) Career-Based Education * Business Institute of Pennsylvania, Sharon * Mercer County Career and Technical Center, Mercer * Penn State Cosmetology Academy, Hermitage * Sharon Regional Health System Schools of Nursing and Radiology, Sharon * Winner Institute of Arts and Sciences, Transfer Public School Districts * Commodore Perry School District * Farrell Area School District * Greenville Area School District * Grove City Area School District * Hermitage School District * Jamestown Area School District * Lakeview School District * Mercer Area School District * Reynolds School District * Sharon City School District * Sharpsville Area School District * West Middlesex Area School District Recreation There is one Pennsylvania state park in Mercer County. Maurice K. Goddard State Park, named for Maurice K. Goddard, former Secretary of the Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Resources, is just off exit 130 of Interstate 79 on Pennsylvania Route 358 near Stoneboro. External Links * http://www.mercercountypa.org/ * Government - http://www.mcc.co.mercer.pa.us/ Category:Mercer County, Pennsylvania Category:Counties of Pennsylvania Category:Established in 1800